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Complacency England's biggest threat

After Steve Finn's "Pakistan is a batting collapse waiting to happen" comment, James Lawton writes in the Independent that England have to watch for complacency

After Steve Finn's "Pakistan is a batting collapse waiting to happen" comment, James Lawton writes in the Independent that England have to watch for complacency.

Finn's assumption that he could so brusquely trash a team that had just beaten his own in a memorable Test match, and from a position of such slender, and favourable experience, rather more than hints at the old English disease: a self-belief that is maybe too quickly acquired, and too easily shed.

Former England coach Duncan Fletcher writes in his column in the Guardian that Kevin Pietersen is lacking first-class match practice, and says a lot of work needs to be done on Pietersen mentally and technically to get him back to scoring big runs.

In the same paper, Mike Selvey writes that the prospect of cloudy skies during the Lord's Test will favour Pakistan more than England.

They are on a natural high after their win at The Oval, and their bowling has come together brilliantly as a unit. This final Test is a game they have to win – and as long as the ball continues to chatter they will be happy enough to take their chances with the bat. On the other hand, while the desire to win every game is uppermost, England, leading the series, will feel less of an imperative to force the game. A draw will suit them fine.

Simon Hughes points out in the Daily Telegraph that if Alastair Cook and Andrew Strauss put on 54 runs, they will become England's most productive opening pair of all time.

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